


Playing Nurse

by MoonCat457



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Coming Out, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Friendship, Getting Together, Kissing, Love Confessions, M/M, Mild Blood, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Scars
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-07-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:41:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,182
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25389232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MoonCat457/pseuds/MoonCat457
Summary: Sirius and Remus finally figure out their feelings for each other when Sirius takes care of Remus after a particularly bad full moon.
Relationships: Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 10
Kudos: 161





	Playing Nurse

**Author's Note:**

  * For [amelia_ta](https://archiveofourown.org/users/amelia_ta/gifts).



> Prompt: "I love your scars, they tell your story and that story is beautiful"  
> Thanks, as always, to [@hellcattriesagain](https://hellcattriesagain.tumblr.com/) for being my fearless alpha reader. I don’t envy your job one bit, but I love you for your endless support.  
> Follow me on [Tumblr](https://mooncat457writing.tumblr.com/) for more random writings from me or to request something!

“Moony?”

Remus’ body felt as if it was on fire as he was shaken awake by someone who could have only been Sirius. He was the only one who dared to try to touch him directly after a transformation. James and Peter always gave him space to wake up and get dressed on his own, but Sirius hardly ever did. Sirius was usually there, ready with a blanket to wrap around Remus’ naked shoulders and words of reassurance that the rest of them were ok. That morning was no different. Remus let his eyes flutter open, and, in the dim, early morning light streaming through the boarded-up windows of the Shrieking Shack, he was able to see Sirius’ concerned face staring down at him.

“Pads?” Remus croaked. He glanced over his shoulder and realized that Sirius had already draped a blanket over him.

“Shhh, I’m here, Moony,” Sirius cooed, brushing an errant curl out of Remus’ eyes. “Do you think you can sit up?”

He tried to push himself up off of the floor, where he was currently lying on his stomach, but pain radiated through his left shoulder and his abdomen as he moved.

“Careful, I think you dislocated your shoulder,” Sirius said, reaching out an arm to help guide him into a seated position.

“That would explain the radiating pain,” Remus said dryly as he sat up. The blanket fell from his shoulders down into his lap, covering the important bits at least.

“Merlin, Re! Your stomach! Prongs, where’s my wand?” Sirius said, turning around to search the floor wildly.

“Here!” Peter chirped quickly, handing Sirius his wand.

Remus pressed a hand to his belly and looked down to see his fingers come away red. “And, that would explain the light-headedness.”

“It was a rough night, Moony,” James said quietly. “You— the wolf was really restless from the start. We didn’t think it would be wise to go out for a run, so we tried to keep him here, but then he only got worse.”

“You’ll be alright, Re,” Sirius whispered, his voice wavering slightly. “Can you just lie back?”

Remus ignored the instruction and glanced frantically between his three friends, searching for injuries. “You guys are alright, though? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“No, the wolf didn’t hurt us,” James said. “We’re ok.”

“But you won’t be if you don’t let me at least try to bandage that wound. Now move your hand and lie back,” Sirius pleaded.

“It probably looks worse than it is,” Remus protested weakly, but he lied back anyway.

“Ferula.” Bandages shot out of Sirius’ wand and wound their way around the wound on his abdomen. “Do you have any other wounds? I would try to set your shoulder, but I’m afraid I’ll make it worse,” Sirius admitted.

“No, I think that’s the worst one. Madame Pomfrey should be able to handle the rest,” Remus assured him and sent him a small smile. “Thanks, Sirius.”

Sirius smiled tentatively back and shoved his wand into his back pocket before reaching to brush a few curls away from Remus’ face. He was a lot gentler than usual, but Remus would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy it.

“Speaking of Madame Pomfrey,” James started, bringing Remus back to the moment, “we need to get going if we’re going to sneak back into the castle and get changed in time for class.”

“James is right,” Sirius said before dropping his voice to a whisper. “Are you able to sit up and get dressed on your own, or do you need help?”

“I’ve got it,” Remus said quickly. He slowly pulled himself up into a seated position, ignoring the pain still radiating through his shoulder and abdomen. “Can you pass me my pants, though?”

Wordlessly, Sirius handed Remus his folded stack of clothes before backing away to stand with James and Peter so Remus could get dressed on his own. It hurt like hell to maneuver, but Remus wasn’t much in the mood to be touched right now, so he gutted through it. He gutted through walking down the tunnel back to Hogwarts, too, but once he was outside and past the Whomping Willow, he couldn’t bear the pain anymore. He collapsed onto his knees in the grass and let out a strained whimper.

“Moons,” Sirius exclaimed, dropping to his knees next to him.

“I’ll be fine, I just need a minute,” Remus panted, clutching his abdomen with his uninjured arm.

“Let us help you,” James said calmly, crouching down on his other side.

Remus looked between the two of them then nodded reluctantly. The two boys helped him to his feet and braced him from either side with an arm wrapped around his waist to escort him the rest of the way to the Hospital Wing. Once they reached the door, Remus stopped and shot them a look. “I should probably go in on my own.”

“Are you sure? Re, you can barely walk, let us at least help you inside,” Sirius suggested.

“Madame Pomfrey can’t know that you were with me,” Remus reasoned.

James let go of Remus and stepped next to Peter. “Moony’s right.”

“But—” Sirius started. He looked between Remus and James, tightening his arm around Remus’ waist.

“I’ll be ok. You should go to class.”

“He’ll be ok, Padfoot.” James placed a hand on Sirius’ shoulder to pull him away from Remus, but Sirius wouldn’t budge.

“You can come to visit during lunch,” Remus said. “Go to class. I need you to take good notes for me, alright?”

Deflating slightly, Sirius nodded and stepped back so Remus could enter the Hospital Wing on his own.

—

The next time Remus woke up, it was nighttime instead of early morning, and he was in the comfort of a bed in the hospital wing instead of on a dirty hardwood floor. With his eyes still closed, he did a mental scan of his body for injuries. There was a dull ache in his left shoulder, and, now that his entire body didn’t feel like it was on fire, he realized that he had, in fact, dislocated it as Sirius had said. He could also feel thick bandages wrapped around his torso, presumably covering the massive scratch he’d given himself. Besides that, there were no other significant injuries that he could feel, but there was one more thing he noticed: a warm hand gently cupping his.

Remus’ eyes fluttered open slowly to take in the sight of Sirius, leaning back in a chair, his feet propped up on the nightstand, one hand holding a book in front of his face while the other gently clutches Remus’ on top of the white hospital linens. Remus stared at their intertwined hands, watching Sirius’ thumb brush idly against his knuckles as he read, seemingly oblivious to the fact that Remus was now awake. It was such a simple gesture, yet so intimate. It made Remus’ stomach flutter. He sat for another few moments, merely letting himself enjoy the soft feel of Sirius’ hand in his before deciding to let his friend know that he was awake.

“Am I still dreaming, or is Sirius Black actually reading a book for once?” Remus croaked, his voice still thick from spending almost an entire day asleep.

Sirius glanced up from his book, startled. “Moons, you’re awake!” He tried to quickly let go of Remus’ hand, but Remus gripped tighter, not ready to let go just yet. Sirius smiled and let his feet hit the ground to scoot the chair closer to his bedside. “How are you feeling?”

“Like a thousand galleons,” Remus deadpanned.

“I was really worried about you,” Sirius admitted. “I tried to come to sit with you during lunch, but Madame Pomfrey wouldn’t let me in. I could barely focus in class all day today.”

“So, I guess I’ll have to get today’s notes from James, even though I can never read his handwriting.” Sirius gave him a narrowed look, so he continued, “I’m feeling better, really. I’ll be in this sling for a few days, but I’ll recover. I heal fast thanks to the wolf.”

“I’m glad you’re ok.”

Remus smiled, which Sirius nervously returned. It was a little jarring to see Sirius nervous when he was usually the picture of confidence. Oddly enough, it put Remus more at ease. Because if Sirius was nervous around him, then maybe, just maybe… Remus took a chance. He shifted his hand to lace his fingers between Sirius’ and gave his hand a squeeze as he pulled it into his lap.

Sirius’ smile widened. “Do you think you’ll be recovered enough by this weekend?”

Remus lifted an eyebrow at him. “That depends on what you have planned.”

Sirius laughed loudly— that laugh that was so similar to a dog’s bark that it wasn’t at all surprising when they’d found out his animagus form was a dog early last year. Madame Pomfrey shot him a glare from her desk across the room, which quieted him quickly. “Well, James has Quidditch practice, and Peter has that study date with Heather Hufflepuff—”

“Her last name isn’t ‘Hufflepuff,’ Sirius,” Remus interjected.

Sirius let out a frustrated huff. “That’s not the point, Re. I’m trying to ask you— Argh. Will you come to Hogsmeade with me?”

Remus tried his hardest to prevent what was sure to be a stupid grin from forming on his face. “Are you asking me on a date?”

“That depends on whether or not you feel the same way as I do,” Sirius replied.

Unable to hide his happiness any longer, Remus smiled at him and nodded.

“So that’s a yes?” Sirius asked hopefully.

“Well, I’ve been waiting for you to ask me out for years now, so I’m not going to let a dislocated shoulder get in the way of that now.”

“Years, huh?”

Remus felt his face flush, and he reflexively went to cover his face with his free arm, which also happened to be the one in a sling. “Ow! Bloody hell.”

“Are you ok? Do you need me to get Madame Pomfrey?” Sirius asked.

“No, I’m alright,” Remus said quickly. “Just—Stay?”

Sirius smiled and nodded before leaning to rest his head in Remus’ lap, like he often did when they were lounging around in the common room, except this time felt different. Sirius pressed a kiss Remus’s knuckles, and they fell into a comfortable silence.

“It’s been years for me, too,” Sirius admitted softly, just as Remus started to drift back off to sleep.

* * *

“Morning, Moony!” Sirius chirped, pushing off of the wall he was leaning against outside of the Hospital Wing.

“Sirius!” Remus exclaimed, jumping slightly. “Aren’t you supposed to be in class?”

“It’s Thursday. I have a double free block in the morning, remember?”

“Oh, right. I kind of forgot what day it was, if I’m being honest,” Remus said wearily. 

Sirius stared at him for a moment and softened. Usually, by the second day after a transformation, Remus started to get his energy back, but clearly, Tuesday’s moon had been really tough on him, injuries aside. “You aren’t trying to go to class, are you?” he asked, gesturing at the uniform robes Remus was wearing.

“No, but these were the clean clothes I had stashed in the Hospital Wing. Madame Pomfrey said I could leave, but only if I went straight up to the dorm and got back into bed.”

“Good. Then let’s get you to bed.”

“‘Let’s’?” Remus repeated back at him. “Don’t you have your usual Thursday morning pranks to pull with James?”

“James has got Peter for that,” he replied with a shrug. “Besides, I wanted to make sure you were alright. Just let me escort you home safely.”

“How chivalrous of you.”

“Well, I did learn something in all of those etiquette lessons that dear Walburga forced me to go to,” Sirius said with a wink.

Remus smirked. “Alright, let’s go. I’m nearly dead on my feet.”

They started to walk down the hall side by side in comfortable silence, Sirius occasionally brushing his shoulder against Remus’ non-injured one. By the time they got to the third floor, he had realized that Remus wasn’t kidding when he said he was dead on his feet. He glanced over and noticed Remus struggling to carry his feet up each step. Wordlessly, Sirius took Remus’ free arm and placed it around his own waist, then snaked an arm around the middle of his back, careful to avoid touching the boy’s injured arm.

Remus stopped and looked up at him. “I capable of walking on my own, Sirius.”

“I know you are. What if I simply wanted to take advantage of having an empty corridor to canoodle with my best friend?” Sirius waggled his eyebrows, which had Remus rolling his eyes.

“That’s a load of dragon’s dung,” he said with a huff, yet Sirius felt Remus’ arm tighten around his waist as he leaned more into his torso anyway. “But I appreciate the lie.”

Sirius felt the urge to lean down and press a kiss to the top of Remus’ sandy brown, curly hair, but decided not to press his luck, so he continued walking, supporting more and more of Remus’ weight by the time they got to the seventh floor. “Wrackspurt,” he said, clearly, and the portrait of the Fat Lady swung open. He helped Remus climb through the portrait hole and across the common room. “Think you can manage the stairs on your own? I don’t think we’ll fit side by side like we used to back in the day.”

“Yea, I think I’ve got it.” Remus stepped back, his hand sliding across Sirius’ back before dropping to his side. “Thank you.”

“No problem. I’m right behind you.” He reached forward and gave Remus’ hand a squeeze, then gestured for him to head up the stairs first.

Two sets of stairs later, they stepped into the empty dorm room they share with James and Peter, and Remus instantly headed for his four-poster bed. “I don’t know why this moon was so bad,” he mused as he tried to shrug out of his robes.

“Well, you’ve been stressing out about NEWTs even though they’re over a year away, so maybe it’s just the pent up stress. You should really relax more,” Sirius gently suggested as he watched Remus struggle with his clothes. After a moment, Sirius closed the distance between where he was standing by the door and Remus’ bed and sat next to him. “Here, let me help you.”

“I can do it!” Remus snapped.

Sirius quickly yanked his hands back and settled them in his lap. “Sorry, I only—”

“No, I’m sorry,” Remus said with a sigh. “It’s just— If you haven’t noticed, I don’t normally get changed in front of people… For a reason.” He stared at the floor, fiddling with a loose thread on his robes.

“Your scars?” Sirius ventured carefully. When Remus didn’t look up, he continued. “Moony, I’ve seen you naked nearly a dozen times post-transformation. I’ve seen your scars before.”

Remus bit his lip and looked up again. “But that’s different. That’s in the dim light of the Shrieking Shack, not in broad daylight in the middle of our dorm.”

“It doesn’t matter to me,” Sirius insisted, reaching over to take one of his hands and smiling when Remus laced their fingers together like it was second nature. “I’m still going to think you’re the fittest guy in our year no matter what. Now let me help you change into your pajamas and get into bed like Madame Pomfrey told you.”

Remus smirked and shook his head. “Alright, fine. I’m too knackered to argue with you.”

“Good.” Sirius quickly brought their entwined hands up to his mouth to place a soft kiss on the back of Remus’ hands then motioned for Remus to turn so he could start helping him out of his robes.

Outer robes discarded, Sirius gently undid the sling to help Remus remove his oxford shirt and tie. It took a little maneuvering to avoid jostling his shoulder, but eventually, they managed it, and Remus sat in front of Sirius, his torso bare save for the bandage wrapped around his stomach. Remus hadn’t been wrong; seeing him in the dim dusk light of the Shrieking Shack was different than seeing him in the full daylight of their dorm room. In this light, he could fully see the faint white lines that littered Remus’ torso. Some were faint, and some were more raised and jagged. He could remember the nights when some of them happened almost vividly, like the one on his right shoulder blade: the one he got the first transformation he’d spent with Prongs, Padfoot, and Wormtail. Sirius wanted to reach out and touch it and trace his finger reverently over it, but he wasn’t sure if that would be alright.

“You’re disgusted by them, aren’t you?” Remus asked, his voice sounding smaller and more vulnerable than Sirius had ever heard it before.

“What?” Sirius asked, realizing that he’d been silent for way too long. “No, Re—” he placed a hand on Remus’ shoulder to turn him to face him. “I love your scars. They tell your story, and that story is beautiful.”

Remus stared at him for a moment before starting to laugh.

“What?” he asked indignantly.

“That was a really corny line, Pads.”

“That wasn’t a line! I really d—” Sirius’ protest died in his throat as Remus’ pulled Sirius close by his uniform tie and pressed their lips together in a quick, chaste kiss. “I— You— We—” He opened and shut his mouth a few times as he tried to process what exactly had just happened; meanwhile, Remus simply smiled at him, a blush slowly creeping onto his cheeks. “What was that for? Not that I’m complaining, mind you,” Sirius said finally, still just the tiniest bit dazed.

“To get you to stop saying such sappy things. It’s unnerving,” Remus said.

Sirius smiled widely. “Well, if saying sappy things gets you to kiss me, then I might have to come up with more to say,” he teased.

Remus laughed loudly, then winced and removed the hand from Sirius’ tie so he could clutch the wound in his stomach.

“Sorry,” Sirius said sheepishly. He tentatively moved the hand on Remus’ shoulder up to gently cradle his neck. “I’ll stop trying to make you laugh if it’s going to hurt you.”

Remus smiled fondly and leaned in to press their lips back together, this time for longer. “I’m not sure that’s possible. You always make me laugh, even when you aren’t trying. It’s one of the things I love about you.”

Sirius pulled away and blinked at him. Did he just say what he thought he did?

“I—That’s not— I didn’t exactly mean it like that—” Remus stammered.

He quickly brought his lips back to Remus’ for a soft kiss. “I love you, too, you know?” He rested his forehead against his before continuing. “I’m honestly not sure if it’s an ‘in love’ kind of love or just the same kind of love that I’ve always had for you, but I do know that it’s different from the love I have for James or even Peter. It has been for a long time. It wasn’t until I realized out that I was into blokes that I figured out why.” He kissed him again. “Point is, I love you, and I’m very much looking forward to figuring out what that means in the grand scheme of things.”

“Me, too,” Remus muttered.

Sirius smiled and gave Remus one more quick kiss— because now that he knows what it’s like to actually kiss the boy, his boy, instead of having inconvenient daydreams about it, he couldn’t get enough. “Come on. Let’s get you into bed. Pajama top or one of those adorable jumpers of yours?”

“Jumper. That green one with—”

“The little stripe along the bottom,” Sirius finished for him. “I know the one. It’s my favorite. Brings out your eyes.” He smiled and brushed his lips against his forehead, then stood up. “I’ll dig it out if you want to get into your pajama pants. I figure we should probably wait until at least after our first date before—”

“Padfoot, do not even think of finishing that sentence,” Remus admonished.

He sent him a cheeky grin then turned his attention to the trunk at the foot of Remus’ bed, digging through it to find the requested jumper. When he found it, he straightened up and found Remus sitting back down on his bed, his uniform pants swapped out for a pair of Gryffindor red plaid pajama pants. “You realize that you’re going to look like Christmas with this combo?” he teased.

“I thought Christmas was your favorite holiday?”

“It is.”

It was a lot easier getting Remus into the jumper than getting him out of his uniform, so, within a minute, Sirius was tucking him into bed. He sat on the edge and laced his fingers with Remus. “You should get some more rest,” he suggested gently, even though he knew he would probably want to do precisely the opposite.

“I spent all day yesterday sleeping,” Remus protested.

“Yet, you still look utterly exhausted.”

“Gee, you really know how to make a bloke feel great about himself.”

“Exhausted, yet gorgeous,” Sirius amended.

“Oh, well, now you’re just overcompensating,” Remus teased sleepily.

“Am not.” Sirius leaned in and gave him a kiss. “Idea: I have another hour before Transfiguration, what if I stayed here,” he murmured against Remus’ lips. “I could use some Moony cuddles.”

“Mmmm. That does sound tempting.” Remus tilted his chin up to bring their lips back together. “Alright, climb in,” he said, lifting the covers and patting the bed next to him.

Sirius smiled, kicked his shoes off, and removed his uniform robe and tie before crawling into the bed. He extended his arm out and gestured for Remus to rest his head on his chest.

Remus complied, snuggling into the crook of Sirius’ arm with a contented sigh. “But you have to actually go to class. And actually take notes because I can’t—”

“Read James’ handwriting. I know, love.” He pressed a kiss to the top of Remus’ head then buried his face in his curls. Barely ten minutes passed before he noticed the shift in Remus’ breathing that let him know he’d fallen asleep, not that he minded. It wasn’t the first time that Remus had fallen asleep on Sirius’ chest, although it was the first time since they’d finally become— well, whatever they were— and Sirius definitely hoped it wouldn’t be the last time. If he could have it his way, he’d spend every night exactly like this.

Not long after Remus, Sirius started to drift off as well, at least until he heard the dorm door open. His eyes flew open, and he quickly raised a finger to let James know to be quiet then pointed at the still sleeping Remus.

“How is he doing?” James whispered as he sat on the bed next to Remus’.

“Exhausted,” Sirius whispered back, gently brushing the curls away from the sleeping boy’s face.

“Did you finally tell him?” James asked, and Sirius raised an eyebrow in question. “Sirius, I see how you look at him.”

Sirius’ eyes widened in fear.

“I don’t have a problem with it,” James said quickly. “I— I know I didn’t exactly react very well when you first told me that you liked blokes, but—” he scrubbed a hand through his hair and let out a long breath. “I want you to be happy, and if Remus makes you happy, then I’m happy.”

Sirius relaxed slightly and looked at Remus, who was still fast asleep, before looking back to James. “Thanks, Prongs. But— can we keep this between us? I’m not sure if I’m ready for Peter to know about any of this yet.”

“Of course.” James stood up and looked down at his two best friends. “I’ll let Minnie know that you’re busy playing nurse and won’t make it to class. She’ll probably cut you some slack.”

“It’s Minnie, do you honestly think that’s likely?”

“If it was just you, not really, but we all know Moony is her favorite. I’ll see you for lunch.” James shut the door behind him, leaving the room in complete silence again.

Sirius looked back at Remus and smiled before starting to lean in to brush a kiss against his forehead.

“So, James knows, then?” Remus whispered, not bothering to open his eyes.

Sirius pulled back, startled. “How much of that did you hear?”

“Enough,” he murmured, nuzzling closer. “I guess I’ll be getting the notes from Lily, then.”

“Of course, that’s what you focus on,” Sirius said with a chuckle. He leaned down again to actually brush a kiss on his forehead this time, but Remus tilted his face up and caught his lips in a soft kiss.

“I’m glad James knows.”

“Me, too, love. Me, too.”


End file.
